'That '70s Show' Star Danny Masterson Sentenced To 30 Years To ...

7 Sep 2023

Forbes

Topline

Former television actor Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison on Thursday, according to multiple reports, three months after Masterson was convicted of rape following allegations he sexually assaulted women he met through the Church of Scientology two decades ago.

Danny Masterson was convicted earlier this year following allegations he sexually assaulted three ... [+] women he met through the Church of Scientology.

2017 Invision Key Facts

Los Angeles-based Judge Charlaine Olmedo sentenced Masterson to 30 years to life in prison, allowing Masterson to be eligible for parole after 25 and a half years with an option for him to be held in prison for life.

Masterson was convicted on two counts of rape in June, though the jury remained deadlocked on a third rape charge stemming from an allegation that he had raped a longtime girlfriend, according to the Associated Press.

Olmedo sentenced Masterson after his attorneys, who argued for a mistrial by suggesting prosecutors focused too heavily on the alleged drugging of the victims, were denied a motion for a new trial.

Key Background

A Los Angeles jury found Masterson, 47, guilty of two counts of forcible rape following a retrial involving three victims. A third count was dismissed and declared a mistrial in November, after Olmedo noted the jury foreman said there was nothing that could aid the jury in reaching a unanimous verdict. Prosecutors later said they would not retry Masterson on a third rape charge. Masterson was arrested in 2020, after a yearslong investigation into sexual assault allegations from the three women, who said Masterson raped them at his Hollywood Hills, California, home between 2001 and 2003. Prosecutors argued Masterson used his prominence as a member of the Church of Scientology to avoid consequences for the allegations, while the three women said the church prevented them from reporting the incidents to police. The Church of Scientology has denied the claim, suggesting the prosecution had focused on “the defendant’s religion and fabrications about the Church to introduce prejudice and inflame bigotry.”

Surprising Fact

Attorneys Thomas Mesereau and Sharon Applebaum—who represented Masterson prior to being removed from the case before trial—were hit with financial sanctions last year after Olmedo ruled they had shared information about the victims with the Church of Scientology, according to the Los Angeles Times. Karin Pouw, a spokesperson for the church, denied the claim while noting the church was not a party in the case. The information included text messages and e-mails between the victims and police, in addition to police reports on the incidents at the victims’ homes which included identifying and banking information.